We previously reported that Shailene Woodley (The Descendants) would be playing Mary Jane in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and we had seen some set photos of the talented young actress as the iconic character.  However, director Marc Webb later said that this would be a brief appearance to set up the third installment, and now it looks like the character has been nixed from part 2 altogether.  In the latest issue of EW [via CBM], which focuses on Woodley and her lead role in the upcoming film Divergent, she told the publication, “Of course I’m bummed. But I am a firm believer in everything happening for a specific reason…Based on the proposed plot, I completely understand the need for holding off on introducing [Mary Jane] until the next film.”  There’s no word if Woodley’s scenes will be held until the next movie, or if these scenes will stay on the cutting room floor.

Woodley will next be seen in The Spectacular Now, and this August she’s set to start filming on the adaptation of The Fault in Our Stars.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.  As we reported a couple days ago, The Amazing Spider-Man 3 is set for June 10, 2016, and The Amazing Spider-Man 4 is due out on May 4, 2018. [Update: Now it looks like the Mary Jane role may be recast.  More after the jump.]

Though Sony went ahead and announced release dates for both The Amazing Spider-Man 3 and The Amazing Spider-Man 4 yesterday, the first Spidey sequel is still currently in production in New York City under director Marc Webb.  We’ve already seen a bevy of set photos that provided glimpses at the film’s villains, Electro (Jamie Foxx) and Rhino (Paul Giamatti), as well as newcomer Shailene Woodley as Mary Jane Watson, but now we may have semi-confirmation about which comics favorite character another castmember is playing.  Felicity Jones joined the film quite a while ago, but thus far the actress’ role has yet to be confirmed.  During a recent interview, though, Jones’ body language and awkward answer could very well be interpreted as a half-hearted “yes” in response to being asked about playing a specific character.

Hit the jump for more, but beware of possible spoilers for the film.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

Just as Warner Bros. is celebrating its successful launch of what will hopefully be a fruitful DC Comics Movie Universe with the release of Man of Steel, Sony and Marvel have swooped in to steal some of that DC thunder.  Sony Pictures has announced that The Amazing Spider-Man 3 and The Amazing Spider-Man 4 will be released in theaters on June 10, 2016 and May 4, 2018, respectively.  The studio rebooted the Spidey franchise last year with director Marc Webb’s The Amazing Spider-Man to the tune of over $750 million in worldwide box office, and Webb is currently hard at work filming the follow-up.  However, it appears as though Sony is wasting no time in continuing the franchise even further.  Hit the jump for more.

There aren’t many surprises left when it comes to The Amazing Spider-Man 2 villain, Electro (Jamie Foxx).  We’ve seen him as the meek, pre-Electro Max Dillon, and we’ve seen his blue, veiny visage as Electro.  Now we’ve learned what his voice will sound like as the mutated baddie.  But before he gave the audience at The Tonight Show a sample of his vocal work, he explained Dillon’s wretched hairstyle.  “My sister is my hair stylist and she created the ‘Django’ look; Ray Charles and things like that.”  When it came to Dillon, Foxx explained, “When I’m the nerd guy, I want to be the first black man with a comb-over. I told her, ‘Make me look like I would look if I never made it.’”  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 will be truly groundbreaking when it comes to African-American hairstyles.

Hit the jump to hear how Electro will sound.  The film also stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Paul Giamatti, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

It’s been a whole week since we’ve seen new set photos from The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and I’m sure there are some webheads out there who need a fix.  Today, we have more set photos, and this time we’re seeing Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield) and Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) swinging around some chaos and mayhem.  Fans of the comics will immediately note her outfit, which we previously showed you in this article although it was a daytime shoot.

Hit the jump to check out the set photos.  The film also stars Jamie Foxx, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Paul Giamatti, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

Yesterday, we saw some set photos of a pre-CG Rhino (Paul Giamatti), but it looked like test shooting rather than something they were using partly because of what Giamatti was wearing (polo shirt and jeans), and partly because the character’s tattoos were mostly gone.  Today, Giamatti looks more in character wearing an undershirt and with the barbed wire tattoo back on his forehead.  Most of that tattoos are still gone, so I continue to wonder how much of the Rhino suit will cover the actor.  Perhaps we’ll see the some concept art at the film’s Comic-Con panel.

Hit the jump to check out the set photos.  The film also stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

In earlier set photos from The Amazing Spider-Man 2, we’ve seen the Rhino (Paul Giamatti) face off against Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield), and getting pantsed for his trouble.  New set photos show that the Rhino may be retaliating with some kind of exoskeleton.  You’ll notice that most of the Rhino’s prison tattoos are gone, so this scene could takes place before the stuff we’ve seen, or other parts of the suit are coming to cover up Giamatti (no need to do the makeup if no one’s going to see it).  There are also some images of our hero hanging out with a kid dressed as Spider-Man.  I don’t know if that’s an actor or a Make-a-Wish thing, but either way: adorable (although the latter has some sadness attached to the adorableness).

Hit the jump to check out the set photos.  The film also stars Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

In 2011, The Amazing Spider-Man went to Comic-Con, and showed off the first footage of The Lizard (the reaction on Twitter from my peers seemed to be “That looks like Killer Croc, and I hope they do more work on the CGI”).  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is set to kick off the 2014 summer movie season, and so it looks like Sony is bringing the movie for a panel at this summer’s San Diego Comic-Con, which runs from July 18 – 21st.  Jamie Foxx, who plays the villain Electro, tells Yahoo! Movies, “Now I’m just waiting to get to Comic-Con and see how people respond to it.”  People will probably be enthusiastic.  They love Spider-Man, and while The Amazing Spider-Man is a misfire, it didn’t kill off interest in the reboot.  There’s still a great cast, and hopefully the script is stronger this time around.

The film also stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Paul Giamatti, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

Another day, another collection of new photos from the set of The Amazing Spider-Man 2.  One of the photos is from director Marc Webb‘s Twitter feed, and shows a futuristic room the director has labeled as “the future”.  In the future, people just leave their clothes and gun strewn about.  At least there’s the digital lock by the door, and hopefully the security has been upgraded from the first film where anyone was welcome as long as they could solve a puzzle (a.k.a. “Bridge Troll Security”).

There’s also some leaked photos from the set, and as you’ll see Spider-Man has a very important call to take.  If this is his cell phone, your guess is as good as mine as to where he keeps it on his skin-tight costume.  Hit the jump to check out the images.  The film stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Jamie Foxx, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Paul Giamatti, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

Another batch of images from the set of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 have landed online, and they appear to be a continuation of the sequence that was snapped yesterday involving Spidey, a bus, and Paul Giamatti’s villain Rhino.  In these new images, Andrew Garfield’s titular character comes face-to-face with Giamatti’s villainous Rhino and the two become involved in a bit of a skirmish that ends, well, somewhat cartoonishly.

Hit the jump to take a look at the images.  The film also stars Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

The set photos from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 continue to roll in.  This past weekend, director Marc Webb gave us an official look at Paul Giamatti as The Rhino, and now we not only have more images of tattooed Giamatti, but Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield) engaging in some superheroics.  That bus full of innocent passengers will most likely be saved unless Webb is considering a dastardly twist where Spider-Man lets it fall on the little girl.  In all fairness, she is wearing a stupid-looking backpack.

Hit the jump to check out the set photos.  The film also stars Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

Marc Webb is a talented director, but his true talent may lie in tweeting.  Webb has tweeted a number of great behind-the-scenes photos from the set of The Amazing Spider-Man 2.  The latest Webb tweets give us a much clearer introduction to Paul Giamatti as Aleksei Sytsevich (aka the Rhino) after a grainy set photo previewed the makeup.

Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Paul Giamatti, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field also star.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens May 2, 2014.  See the full image after the jump.

[If you aren't familiar with the most well-known Spider-Man comic stories, you should probably just stop reading now] Comic book adaptations don’t require strict adherence to the comics.  In Sam Raimi‘s Spider-Man, the director took one of the comics’ defining stories—”The Death of Gwen Stacy”—and re-appropriated so that Green Goblin dropped Mary Jane off the bridge instead of Gwen Stacy, and Spider-Man saved his falling love-interest instead of accidentally snapping her neck due to the speed of acceleration being suddenly halted by his web-line.  So the question that hangs over The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is if director Marc Webb will follow The Amazing Spider-Man #121-122 (June–July 1973), “The Night Gwen Stacy Died”.  New set photos may have the answer.

Hit the jump to check out the set photos but beware of possible spoilers.  The film stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Paul Giamatti, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

We’ve already seen that Electro (Jamie Foxx) will be a colorful villain in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, but he’s not the only baddie lurking about.  Paul Giamatti was cast as the Rhino, a kind of silly character in the comics who wore a super-powered suit that resembled a rhino (it’s grey and the helmet has horns) and smashed stuff until Spidey came to save the day.  The Rhino’s real name is “Aleksei Sytsevich”, and if you want to have a Russian bad guy, take the visual shortcut and deck him out in a track suit and prison tattoos.  Set video has reportedly been taken of a stunt driver sporting this look who is apparently wearing a Giamatti mask.  The scene involves a tow truck dragging an Oscorp truck and crashing through police cars.

Hit the jump to check out the video.  The film also stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Paul Giamatti, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

The deluge of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 set photos continues.  Last week, we got our first official look at Jamie Foxx in his non-Electro form, and these unofficial set photos provide more shots of the antagonist and his atrocious hairstyle.  I’ll caution that these set photos are moving us closer to understanding the character’s arc and his relationship to Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield), so spoiler-phobes should consider themselves warned.  Director Marc Webb has also released a couple of innocuous set photos, and we’ve thrown those in as well.

Hit the jump to check out the set photos.  The film also stars Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Paul Giamatti, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014. [Update: We've added behind-the-scenes video]